“It’s quite bigger than most, I think,” Jen murmured.
“Yes, it is,” Bernard agreed. “It’s a rare breed, probably.”
“What if this indicates that they’ve been evolving over the years and have not really gone extinct as we originally thought?” Jen wondered.
Bernard thought hard. “That’s a possibility,” he said, nodding.
“Jen’s really fascinated with dragons, you know,” Melissa told him. “She has been doing a lot of research about it.”
“Planning to return to graduate studies, Jen?” Bernard inquired. “I think you’d be able to nail it without any problem.”
“Yeah, Jen,” Melissa urged, linking her arm with Bernard. “Now that your jerk of a boyfriend… I mean, ex-boyfriend… is out of the picture, there should be no major distraction anymore. You can go back to school and land that promotion you’ve been vying for.”
Jen nodded pensively. They were right. It was about time she refocused. Her depression from that break-up had sent her spiraling downward. She had to get up now, not later, not sooner. It’s time to work on my own dreams, she told herself silently with conviction. Then for the first time that day, she smiled genuinely, hope filling her heart.
*****
It was Saturday night. Jen couldn’t believe she was actually clad in a tiny black dress that clung to her body like second skin, partying at the most famous club in the metro. Her brown tresses had been tied up in a sexy, messy bun by none other than the person who’d dragged her there— Melissa.
“You look really gorgeous, Jen,” Mel told her with twinkling eyes and a grin on her lips.
“You’re just admiring your work,” Jen said, trying to be heard over the loud thumping music in the club. She still grinned back, though, knowing that she really did look like a magazine cover model in her smoky makeup, stylish hairstyle, and sexy but elegant garb. However, she didn’t feel that comfortable with what she was wearing because it just didn’t feel like her.
“Well, aside from my awesome work on you, I am pretty certain you’re going to meet someone today,” Mel said with confidence.
“Yeah, you do look amazing,” Bernard quipped. He had an arm around Mel’s bare shoulders. The two of them had been acting so intimately with one another the entire evening that Jen would have felt totally out of place, if not for their other colleagues.
“Thanks,” Jen muttered, turning around so she would not have to see them kiss another time. At least they were surrounded with people she knew. It was actually a company party to celebrate their recent discoveries in Alaska, and also to acknowledge the newly promoted staff.
Suddenly, another lab assistant grabbed her and took her to the dance floor. “Let’s dance, Jen!” the blonde girl called Elise said.
Jen smiled and joined her and some others, trying to loosen up and have some fun. After all, she should be enjoying her freedom rather than sulking at home.
As she danced to the music, she accidentally bumped into someone behind her. When she turned around, her eyes almost bulged out of their sockets.
His hair was a little longer and he’d grown a moustache. But she would never, ever forget those dark, mysterious eyes and that lazy smile that used to make her heart beat so fast. Brian.
At that instant, her whole world seemed to stop. The deafening music faded to the background and the rest of the club swirled around her.
“Hi, Jen,” Brian said. “Fancy seeing you here.”
Jen forced herself to say hi back. But just as she was about to say something more, a curly woman with false eyelashes came forward and carted Brian away.
She blinked back tears. Her night of freedom had just been shattered by reality. Seeing her ex-boyfriend after a year, together with the new love of his life, felt like a bomb had exploded into her heart. Quickly she hurried back to the bar to look for Mel and find comfort. Her friend was nowhere to be found. But there was someone else there looking at her with concern and curiosity.
She almost did not recognize the tall, well-built man wearing a light denim button-down and a pair of casual khakis. He held out a shot glass to her. “Drink?” he offered, his gray eyes shimmering in the dimness.
Jen didn’t even think or care. She took it and finished the shot with one gulp. The sharp bitterness seemed to set her throat on fire. What the hell!
When she looked up, her eyes seemed to refocus. Now she had a clearer vision of who it was in front of her. “Jack!” she hissed, wide-eyed. “What was that?!”
He simply smiled at her. “Nothing you can’t handle, especially since you look like somebody just stole all of your money.”
“Talk about stealing all of my life…” Jen muttered, shaking her head and sitting down on the bar stool beside him.
Jack chuckled. “Sounds serious. Want to talk about it?”
“No!” Jen said a little louder than she’d intended. “I want to forget about it.”
“Then I suggest you have another drink,” Jack said, signaling for another one from the bartender and pushing it toward Jen.
Jen stared at it for a second, then thought, What the fuck. It’s freedom night. I’m a big girl and nobody cares, anyway.
Jack ordered two more. He drank one while handing the other to Jen.
“You do this all the time?” Jen said after finishing her third shot.
“Nah,” he answered with a grin. “Just when I’m celebrating something important.”
“Oh, okay.” Then it hit her. Jack had actually been promoted to Lab Director! Her hand flew to cover her open mouth as she realized her mistake. “I’m sorry, I forgot. You got promoted too! That’s totally cool! I mean, wow! Congratulations and all!”
Her words reverberated in her ears, and they seem to have sounded bad. What was happening to her voice? Maybe she was drinking too much. She wasn’t used to it.
“Thanks, Jen,” he said.
“I can’t believe you’ve gone such a loooong way in such a shoooort time!” she said in a slightly slurred manner, her pitch higher than usual. Her head was beginning to throb. Even her teeth felt as if they were throbbing!
This time, Jack got a beer for each of them. “Yes, but I believe I’ve worked hard to deserve it.”
“Of course!”
Her head wasn’t really aching, but she somehow knew she was already tipsy. He knew it too.
“You know, I think you’re not used to drinking and partying like this…” Jack said, his voice becoming serious. “Better for you to just have a beer, I suppose.”
“Sure, whatever,” Jen answered with a smile. She took a swig from the beer. “It tastes really good.” She was actually beginning to feel light and good. Brian’s face had disappeared from her mind finally, now replaced by her wandering thoughts of Jack.
She remembered bumping into him in the hallway several times, running into him in the pantry, and reporting to him at times, even though he wasn’t her direct superior. He’d always been so serious and uptight at work. She liked the way he was being such a cool friend at the moment.
As Jack drank from his own beer, he actually told her about himself— how difficult it had been to transfer to the city after growing up on a ranch in the countryside, how he wanted to make it big to make his family proud, and how he enjoyed doing lab work on his own.
Jen nodded, smiling widely. “We’re the same!” she announced with a laugh. “I mean, I love working at the lab on my own too! That’s why I sometimes hang around after work hours.”
Jack leaned over and motioned for her to lean forward too. Their noses were almost touching as his intense eyes seemed to bore a hole into hers. For some reason, her whole body began to heat up. Her heart started hammering against her rib cage.
“I really, really like you, Jen,” he told her sincerely. “I’ve had my eye on you for a while now. I think you and I are going to make wonderful partners.”
Jen was flustered at first. She didn’t know if he was referring to liking her as a future girlfriend
or as a future work partner. But then she realized that he might actually be considering her to take his former position as lab manager, which had surprisingly not been filled up yet. Maybe he had the privilege of choosing who to assign in that vacancy.
“I…” she began softly.
But he placed a finger on her lips, which made her heart thump even harder. “It’s okay,” he quickly said. “You don’t have to respond to that. I just wanted to let you know.”
“You like me as what?” she suddenly asked boldly as a rush of adrenaline gave her the courage to be blunt. Or maybe it was just the alcohol at work.
Jack chuckled at her boldness. “You’re an intriguing woman indeed. Full of surprises too. And very, very intelligent and skillful, I might say. I like all of you, Jen. I really do.”
“As what?” she demanded, although her mind was whirring crazily and her heart was racing madly. “You didn’t answer my question.”
He laughed. “Sorry. I meant to say I like you as in, I want to go out with you.”
“You want me?” Jen said candidly in a flirtatious way.
Jack smiled mysteriously. He took her hand on top of the counter and squeezed it. Then he slid down his stool and took a step closer to her. “You’ve had too much to drink…” he said. “But yes, I want you. Let’s get out of here.”
*****
Jen’s heart was beating furiously. She was a little woozy, but very well aware of what was happening.
As the elevator doors closed, leaving her alone with Jack in the confined space, she felt almost breathless. One minute he was standing right behind her, the next he was pulling her toward him and kissing her neck and her ear.
She became hot all over in a snap. The sweltering heat was fast spreading across her limbs and quickly pooling between her legs.
His arms wrapped around her waist tightly, moving upward to caress her breasts above the fabric of her black dress. She felt his shaft growing behind her, rubbing against her butt.
She softly moaned, just as the elevator doors opened.
Luckily, the hallway was empty. She didn’t even realize that they had just gone down one floor. Everything that followed happened in a blur. Somehow they stumbled toward the carpeted corridor, his lips pressing onto hers finally, stroking her mouth sensually. They kissed their way forward until they reached a door, which he roughly pushed her against, dominating her with his strength.
It didn’t alarm her. It didn’t scare her away. To her surprise, she was actually turned on even more. All logic flew out of her mind as her arms tangled in his hair and her lips eagerly responded to his passionate kiss.
One of his hands slid up her inner thigh under her skirt, filling her with burning desire. He teased her with his fingers, which made her ache for him so badly. He started fondling her on top of her now soaked lace panties.
She groaned with immense desire.
But then he pulled back his hand. He stopped kissing her. She looked at him with confusion and watched him take out a card from the back of his jeans. He leaned forward, his lips almost touching her bare neck, as he used the card to open the door.
When the light blinked, he kissed her neck with much pressure, pushing the door open. They tumbled toward the inside of the dark room and somehow got to the edge of the king-sized bed in the center.
What are you doing, Jen? The unwelcome thought in her head came in the midst of their foreplay. She ignored it and started unzipping his pants and tugging them downward. She let him push her down on the bed, which encouraged her to continue and pull him closer for a blow job.
I hate you, Brian, she said silently with indignation, and then placed Jack’s cock inside her mouth. Her tongue kneaded the length of his shaft as she moved her head front and back, making him moan with pleasure. She smiled inwardly as she consumed him deeper and faster, determined to give him a night he would never forget.
Before she could make him come, he stopped her and knelt in front of her. Brusquely he took off her panties and opened her legs apart. She watched him lift her skirt and start sucking on her swollen, slippery outer lips. She gasped as the erotic sensations made her legs tremble. He slid his tongue inside her slit then and began moving it in and out, up and down. It was so pleasurable that she couldn’t help rolling her eyes upward and letting out a scream.
She could feel his tongue pushing deeper into her, moving in circles, teasing, and massaging. With her hands on his head, she closed her eyes and let herself feel the intensifying delight and satisfaction.
Soon he stood up and moved her onto the middle of the bed. He took both of her legs and placed them on either side of his body. With her butt lifted off the surface of the bed, he pushed into her entrance forcefully. Again and again he pushed, going deeper each time. She let out a series of groans as the powerful heat and pain enfolded her, combined with extreme pleasure.
They both panted heavily as their bodies moved in unison, both of them lost in passion. Together they climbed higher and higher. Jen felt an orgasm building up.
Very soon, she felt herself explode in unfathomable bliss, just as she felt the sticky fluid burst out of him and into her.
They were both so spent afterward that they soon fell asleep beside each other.
Many hours went by. Even when the sun came up, they lay on the bed naked, very much exhausted.
Eventually, the sun streamed through a thin gap between the curtains, tickling Jen’s eyes and making them flutter. She woke up, opening her eyes slowly. At first, she was at a loss and did not know where she was. Then all of a sudden, everything rushed back.
“Shit,” she whispered, quickly sitting up and seeing her naked body. She pulled on the sheets to cover herself as she turned toward the man lying beside her.
He was also very much naked. She could not take off her eyes even more from his muscular, well-proportioned body, now well-lit by the daylight.
“Enjoying the sight, huh?” he mumbled sleepily. There was a smile on his handsome face and his eyes were twinkling mischievously.
She immediately grabbed a pillow and threw it over his exposed cock. She was about to get up when he grabbed her hand and pulled her back towards him, into his arms.
When their bare bodies touched, she felt her libido taking over again. She felt warm and cold all over, although she stayed frozen in his embrace.
“Did you enjoy last night, Jen?” he murmured in her ear, his breath tickling her skin.
She could not answer. It was her first time to have a one-night stand, but at least she could assure herself that it was not with a complete stranger. Well, one thing she’d forgotten to ask Mel was—what does a girl do during the morning after? It was sort of awkward!
But he seemed to want another round, and her body was quickly succumbing to the temptation. She found herself not able to resist his charms, touches and smile.
They started kissing again. And before she knew it, they had another explosive sex. Not just once, but twice.
It was a Saturday so they could at least rest the whole day.
She wanted to get up and go home, but she didn’t have the energy to do it. So she ended up sleeping again. And when she opened her eyes once more, she was taken aback by the sight of Jack in his boxers, standing beside the bed and gazing at her with loving admiration. Or was it sexual attraction? She really wasn’t good in these things because she’d only had one boyfriend in her life so far.
“Rise and shine, my dear Jen,” he said, helping her up. When he hoisted her from the bed, she plummeted toward his bulky chest, catching a whiff of his natural scent and a hint of his cologne. The smell intoxicated her, stirring something in her loins once again.
“You know, I think I have to go,” Jen said. “This isn’t really right. I’m gonna go…”
Before he could reply, she grabbed her dress and disappeared into the bathroom to dress up. With her heart beating wildly, she opened the door again, fully dressed, and grabbed her purse. He was calmly seated on the bed, watchi
ng her in fascination.
“Sure you don’t want to have breakfast first?” he asked. “Some eggs, hot coffee.”
“No, thanks,” Jen said tersely. She flew out of the door before she could even be tempted with another offer.
What did I just get myself into? she thought anxiously as she hailed a cab in front of the building and went home with mixed emotions.
*****
Jen figured he’d been after sex all along; that it was just one of those temporary physical attractions that men have. She’d expected him to not give her the time of day again.
But she was wrong. The exact opposite happened afterward.
In the weeks that followed, Jack Roberts went out of his way to converse and spend time with her. At first, it had been awkward and weird. But she’d eventually welcomed it and found herself looking forward to their little exchanges.
One late afternoon, as Jen stepped out of the building, a shiny black sedan stopped in front of her. The window rolled down and she heard his voice before she saw his face.
“Hi, Jen! Headed home?” he asked with a smile. “Hop in.”
Since it had been an extra-tiring day for her and she was eager to get back to the old Smith home that her parents had left to her when they had passed away, she smiled and got in.
He had actually attempted to offer her rides and ask her out on dates a few times before, but she’d always refused. This time, though, she knew him better. She was more at ease because they had gotten to be friends.
He was a confident, intelligent man who still had that interesting, mysterious air about him. She couldn’t deny it any longer. She was greatly drawn to his wit, good looks, and charms. It wasn’t just a way of getting back at her no-good ex or trying to forget him.
“You want to come in?” she actually asked as he walked her to the front door of the old bungalow where she’d lived almost all her life. He knew she was all alone, there because her elder sisters had moved out when they’d gotten married.
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